Corporate & Hospitality

Socceroos in Champions League action

Socceroos James Holland and Tom Rogic aim to help their club sides qualify for the UEFA Champions League group phase in their respective qualifiers.

Socceroos midfielder James Holland will get a taste of Champions League football this season, after his FK Austria Vienna side qualified for the group stage following a 4-3 aggregate win against Dinamo Zagreb.

Holding a 2-0 advantage from the first leg in Croatia, the hosts looked to have sealed their passage in the fifth minute when Florian Mader netted his first goal in the competition.

However a dramatic comeback from Dinamo saw them score three unanswered goals to take the lead in the tie on the away goals rule, much to the disbelief of fans inside the Franz Horr Stadium.

Substitute Roman Kienast was the hero for the home side, scoring what turned out to be the decisive goal just a minute after replacing Holland in the 81st minute. Despite succumbing to a 3-2 defeat on the night FK Austria progressed by virtue of their win in the first leg.

Holland has been a solid contributor in defensive midfield for the Austrian side, who are coming third in their domestic league. The former Newcastle Jets midfielder has started every game this season and will have extra cause for celebration today after being named in the Socceroos squad to face Brazil.

Meanwhile another Socceroo, Tom Rogic will be a likely starter for Celtic when they attempt to overturn a 2-0 deficit against Kazakhstan side Shakhter Karagandy tonight.

The Scottish champions are suffering numerous injuries, which gave the former Central Coast midfielder a start at the weekend and Hoops Manager Neil Lennon has said he is unlikely to tinker with his starting side too much.

Meanwhile the Kazakh champions have said they will not perform their controversial ritual of sacrificing sheep before the match, which caused outrage when this was done prior to the first-leg.

Rogic had come off the bench to help Celtic cruise into the final qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League against Northern Irish minnows Cliftonville last month.

The 20-year-old was also today named in Holger Osieck-s Socceroos squad to face Brazil on 7 September.